BF2S Forums What does paying our taxes do for us?

Is this where you jump out and say "aha! You're so wrong! x USD is used on y!"?

Naaa I'm just trying to get a general consensus? I'm not really complaining and I'm asking what paying the taxes does for us?

Different places, different stuff, I might generalize something later and maybe make some points.

P.S. We in the U.S. get taxes on everything, and basically became a country because of taxation.. That's why we complain about it.

cpt.fass1 wrote:

Naaa I'm just trying to get a general consensus? I'm not really complaining and I'm asking what paying the taxes does for us?

Different places, different stuff, I might generalize something later and maybe make some points.

P.S. We in the U.S. get taxes on everything, and basically became a country because of taxation.. That's why we complain about it.

35% Income tax
24% VAT
Vehicle tax up to €500 per year
Bunch of small taxes to stuff you never notice

I think that are all the taxes I'm paying these days.

Roads: Free
Healthcare: Almost free
College education: Almost free

All I can think of at the moment.

Improving the roads, social security, the military, public school funding, federally-funded projects, etc

we're pretty socialized, as you know.


I still use private health care though, because it's just so much easier and faster, and they are more service minded. Plus my doctor is pretty much on seminars (read: golf trips) 24/7. Still always good to have that option, in case something serious happens.

Use the roads, schools, bus, metro every week.

cpt.fass1 wrote:

Well what Goods/services are you getting?

You mean goods and services I have personally used, paid by the government?
Well lets see.

Roads.
School education (k-12)
Uni education
Child support (well my parents got that)
Healthcare
3 newspapers every week
A TV station
Subsidised Public transport (free for school students)
Water
Telecommunications, gas & electricity was all set up by the government but has since been privatised.
Garbage collectors

What I also benefit from indirectly.
Military
Police
Fire Department
Fair trading laws (ACCC)

Theres probably more but I can't think of them atm.

FatherTed wrote:

Healthcare, Education, Military, Emergency Services, Infrastructure.

Really could go on. Point?

When I was living in Canada;

Yes, NO, NO, Yes, NO.

Yes, the Canadian healthcare is good and free.

NO, As long as I lived in Quebec, education was crap. I don't recall learning anything useful or important at school.

It went like this; French: Where all your money goes in.
                        English: I learned my English on the internet. English was like the kindergarten class... With an Italian teacher. GG
                        Math: Some foreign bulgarian bitch who doesn't know wtf shes doing and can't control the class. The school doesn't give a shit.
                        Music: GTFO
                        Arts: See above.
                        Science: Some obese bitch teaching us about our anatomy... all year long.
                        History: How the great UK fucked the Quebecois.
                        Geography: Human Science. Wait what?
                        Sports: "Insert stupid game nobody knows about here" Football/ Basketball/ American Football/ Rugby doesn't exist.
                        Spanish: Hahahahahahahaha, might as well teach us Chinese if you take it that way.
                       
                        "Passing" At the end of the year, there are a bunch of exams which determines if u pass or get fucked, but even if you score 100, if the teacher doesn't like you, you're going for a double pass.

NO: Canadian military = NATO

Yes: Emergency services are k, never had the opportunity to use them.

NO: Canada is the world capital of road potholes, we Romanians are in deep financial shit, but our roads aren't broken and our bridges don't fall after 20 years: see De la Concorde bridge.

Also, public transport is always smelling like piss and is always dirty. We Romanians who are in deep shit have clean public transport and it smells like rails not pissburnt rubber.

Even though, for my country, it's worse, it would go like that;

NO, Yes*, Yes*, NO, Yes.

The health care in Romania is absolute shit, based on the all wise American system, but worse. You basically better pray to your fake god that nothing happens to you, if it does, chances are its going to fuck you up totally once you are at the hospital; because you will pay a fortune for a treatment which may involve wrong diagnosis, negligence of norms (sterilizing tools by example) an if all apply, a treatment for something you don't have and get a new problem along with your old one, probably infection or other fucked up shit.

School, I haven't been at school yet, but our school system is supposed to be one of Europe' tightest meaning that I am likely to get fucked in the ass once I start school. There were reports that good students from western EU were struggling to even pass their year in Romania, if its true I'm fucked. The reason for the * is that not everyone in Romania has school access at ease, and those with difficulty getting it will most likely end up having to take the train for 5 hours to the nearest city to have descent education because the fucktwats in the government wont build a school in their town, and if there is one it will most likely have no roof and be in halted construction.

Our military: NATO.

Our emergency services are OK for regular events, but for stuff like earthquakes and PEOPLE STEALING AKM's FROM AN ARMY BASE, they fail.

Our Infrastructure: See above, we have good roads, good transportation, our rails are half shit (commuters, semi fasts) half godly(fasts, Intercity), but a lot of it is in construction. The next earthquake will say.

Its pretty obvious here that taxes will never go where there are supposed to, you will only see improvement in private industries. The money from the taxes goes to the few assholes who run the money supply and to the high ranking government people. Few goes back to the people as you can see. But hey: CAPITALISM FOR THE WIN.

It keeps the zombie hordes away.
That and mandatory buttsecks.
Pay your taxes and quit griping.

OP does have a point - I don't feel like I get value for the amount of tax I pay.  People always complain about the bottom feeders that suck public money from welfare and other social services, but it seems like the fact that public money is transferred to an industry that provides no tangible product (financial sector) is ignored or but of secondary concern.  Add in the ridiculous amounts of money thrown at corporations that do everything they can to avoid paying taxes in the US by incorporating in tax havens and it really confuses me when people complain about Suzie Q. in the dole line trying to get her week's worth of food stamps without acknowledging the much more massive transfer at the top of the system.  The number comparison is staggering - when you add up even conservative estimates of total social program spending against various tax breaks, corporate welfare (for lack of a better term), massive financial bailouts and the like it is at most a +/- of $100 billion.  Last time I checked Suzie Q. isn't getting billion dollar checks from the government in that social services line.

I have no problem paying taxes - I can't stand my money flowing to areas that provide nothing and with little-to-no accountability.
Need welfare?  Fill out forms, prove your residence, prove you need it, prove you are taking steps to improve your condition.
Need a bailout?  Lobby the government and they give you the money.  Spend it however you want - executive bonuses, cushy seminars, buying up more toxic assets - it doesn't matter!

^^ a simplistic explanation for the simpletons to eat up

Yeah, but Ken - when these companies don't pay their share, it's the same as if they have received money from out of your pocket...it's just more convenient that the money isn't transferred.

For welfare, the money actually has to flow to have it function.

I do know that welfare rules were planned to be more strict in 2009, and it looks like we will be doing the same to businesses soon too.

Close up some of those corporate tax loopholes in a global economy, well, you might just be sending more companies overseas.  Perhaps these overseas loopholes are the only thing keeping the companies partially here...

Have to deal with over taxing/ polish immigrants, but still have money in my pocket..